World Mission Sunday and the Baptismal Call
Some of us may be called to go further out, but the vocation is always an active one because the Holy Spirit is constantly moving, constantly burning, constantly alive!
Two Types of People
Brad and I were hanging out one evening after our kids were in bed wondering why we were so dissatisfied climbing this ladder of the American dream. Where did we fit in this life? We felt like such outcasts. Where did God want us in all of this? We owned successful businesses and could buy nice things for our house. Everybody wants that and it’s totally normal — so why were we so unsatisfied? What was wrong with us?
How He Called
He did not accept it, He gave it back saying, “not like this.” This was troubling to me because I was convicted that God wanted it. Every day this happened, until the fourth day when I realized that the Lord did not want that ‘yes,’ because coupled with that ‘yes’ were expectations, fears, and anxieties. I was giving a ‘yes’ but I was not trusting the Lord with its entirety.
A Surprising Lunch with Friends
Yu Hou came in with pizza, our lunch! There is actually a Pizza Hut (!) in the city but we have not gone yet. I immediately appreciated how they were thoughtful about what we might like to eat.
Mercy and Melted Ice Cream
Instead of cleaning out my freezer, I could have been looking over the shredded remains of our home. I could have been facing the loss of everything we own. God protected us from that devastation, and although I rejoiced for a day or so, I immediately fell back into self-pity over a few hours of gross housework? How quickly I forget!
Beautiful Feet
[The Bible] doesn’t specify if the feet are old or young, clean or dirty, what color they are. They are just beautiful.
Even So, God is at Work!
These past months have not turned out as we had imagined they would. Many of our visitors were unable to come due to borders closing, mission trips were cancelled, ministries were prohibited to continue. Even so, God is at work in our lives and the lives of those around us.
Helping Orphans When Others Can’t
“Oh, there are many suffering. Where do we begin?” After discussing several options we agreed to start with a nearby orphanage where a small group of nuns care for 81 kids who were born HIV+.
Erik’s Reflection on Pentecost
Erik expects an unprecedented Pentecost for unprecedented times. “It’s my prayer that we would no longer keep Christ quarantined within our homes, within our church walls — that we would be bold proclaimers of the Gospel.”
Natalia’s Reflection on the Ascension
Natalia Schumann reflects on the Ascension of Jesus into Heaven and His last words to his disciples. #thegreatcommission
Lockdown Ministry in Peru
I never knew living in solidarity with the poor meant being locked away from them for weeks! I think about what St. Paul must have felt when he was imprisoned: his ministries were halted by the authorities and he was unable to share the Good News as he planned. However St. Paul did not sit idle during his confinement.
A Missionary in a Pandemic
“I certainly didn’t plan for a worldwide pandemic to happen in my first year back in the field,” I shared with her. “None of us knew that this would happen,” she said. “But the Lord knew. And He still called you.” She encouraged me to sit with that, not as a reason to either stay or go, but rather to really give everything back to the Lord and seek Him in each situation.
Novena of Praise and Thanks
FMC’s Response to COVID-19
We’ve put together an FAQ page in response to and in anticipation of the many questions you may have about our missionaries and our response to the current pandemic.
A Missionary Family
Some days I feel like I’m not doing much—I have this vision of getting up in front of the congregation, preaching the Gospel from my heart to a church full of people and playing guitar while leading beautiful hymns. Then reality hits: I don’t speak Spanish that well, and I can’t play the guitar. This missionary life has been a lesson in putting what little I have at the disposal of the Holy Spirit, even my weakness.
Gabriel and the Wooden Airplane
I looked in his eyes and told him he was a special young man. I asked him why he did it; His response was simple, “It’s what Jesus would have done.”
Meru Children’s Home
Doktors in Taiwan
The first night was interesting for sure. The nights still got down to the 40s and, without heat, we were a little chilly. There were a bunch of noises, too, to feed our imaginations: some weird squealing (which we think now is a nighthawk), a rooster who must be jet lagged too as he started at 2am, and then stray dogs barking for what seemed like hours at a time. We were rattled by the initial shock of being in such a different place. The next morning, the reading was from Mark 4 where Jesus calmed the storm and I felt like the Lord was speaking to me when he said, “Why are you terrified? Do you not yet have faith?” (Mark 4:40)
